On The Sports Bar Beat: Divided Loyalties, United Ending

– Three hours before the New York Giants even took the field Sunday, the cheers started coming from the Big Blue faithful.

They were loud and they were definitive.

The Giants wanted the Patriots.

Only four hours later, it was time for New England fans to switch roles.

"We want to see the Giants in the Super Bowl because we want some revenge from a couple of years ago," Patriots fan Michelle "Boom" Cutrali of Farmington said.

And so it went Sunday. Giants rooting for Patriots; New England rooting for New York.

Enemies suddenly friends.

It was strange times for football fans in Connecticut.

But by 10:35 p.m. Sunday, most of them got what they wanted.

New York defeated San Francisco 20-17 in overtime to set up a Super Bowl rematch with New England, which it beat in one of the most memorable Super Bowls in 2008. The Patriots beat Baltimore 23-20 earlier in the evening after Ravens kicker Billy Cundiff missed a field goal wide left that would've forced overtime.

"Everyone wants to see the Pats and the Giants in the Super Bowl," Cutrali said.

Both games left state football fans not just conflicted but exasperated.

The Giants needed overtime dramatics from Eli Manning, Ahmad Bradshaw and its special teams unit to seal up their second trip to the Super Bowl in four years, while the Patriots overcame a tight game with the help of a 1-yard touchdown dive by Tom Brady.

"I probably shouldn't have been watching these games in public," Cutrali said.

Still, the most striking fan story out of Sunday came from the mixing of alliances.

Giants and Patriots fans sat side-by-side at Damon's Tavern in Hartford and Shea's American Bar & Grill in Manchester rooting for each others' teams only because they wanted the chance to beat each others' team two weeks later in Super Bowl XLVI .

"With the Giants and Patriots in the Super Bowl it is a true matchup," Brittany Tasco of Farmington said. "It is a game that is going to show who really deserves it."

For New England fans, the game would serve as a long-awaited opportunity to put those nasty memories of Super Bowl XLII behind them.

In 2008, New York shocked previously undefeated New England 17-14 to end the Patriots' bid to become the first undefeated team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins.

The Giants victory denied New Englanders the storybook ending to one of the best seasons in football history and left them stuck pondering a miracle catch by David Tyree that set up a game-winning touchdown from Plaxico Burress.

It stung. Not because the Patriots had lost the game but because those unlikely and unpredictable Giants had stolen their trophy.

And worse, those loud and confident New York fans got to revel in the surprise.

"That was our undefeated season and we had to lose it to that rivalry," Eric Bartholomew of Stafford Springs said. "I was so depressed."

As for the Giants fans, they revel another shot at New England.

Early this season, New York defeated New England and another win against the vaunted Patriots would justify this recent Giants team's place in history.

"For [New York fans] this is a huge deal; we could have two Super Bowl wins against the Patriots," said Tracy Hicks, 22, of Albany, N.Y.,

For Bartholomew and Hicks, the rivalry creates it own mixes of emotions.

Bartholomew is a New England fan, while Hicks roots for the Giants. They've been dating for nearly two months.

"This is just so fun," Bartholomew said. "I root for her team and she roots for my team."

But their divided relationship wasn't the only one popping up on Sunday.

Nick Dalterio of Manchester is one of many Giants fans who said "they're stuck" with New England fans in their family. Dalterio's mother is a Patriots fan while his father is a Giants supporter.

Dalterio followed his father into the trenches with the Big Blue.

"We absolutely want to play each other," Dalterio said. "I get a call from my mom every morning asking me: 'Are you ready?'''

"Every since that Super Bowl [in 2008], it was 'we'll see you this year' or 'we'll see you this year,' " Dalterio said. "Every year the Patriots fans have wanted to get us in the Super Bowl. … It is going to be fun. It will be a second Christmas for all of us."

At Damon's Tavern, the conference championships were certainly good for business.

The Tavern was packed since 2 p.m. and there was not an empty seat in the place for either of the games.

According to Bartholomew, it was a perfect day of football for those from Connecticut.

In a state with no pro football team, this was the ideal situation – the state's two favorite NFL teams (sorry, Jets fans) picking up victories and making the biggest game an all-East Coast affair.

And make no mistake: No one was shedding a tear for those fans in other parts of the country.

"On this side of the nation it is going to be one pumped-up weekend," Tasco said. "We're going to be going strong all weekend for this one."